My Life as the Ugly Stepsister

by Juli Alexander

  Okay, I told myself. There’s no reason to panic. You don’t have to go hang with Haley. Just chill like your friends haven’t arrived yet. Duh. Why hadn’t I thought of that earlier? So I relaxed and watched the game. They were good, of course. I didn’t really keep track of the score because I mostly watched Jonathan. I could tell from the intensity that he was “in the zone.” He hadn’t even noticed me yet. And he probably wouldn’t for a long time.

  My cell rang and I gave silent thanks. MC was finally returning my call. I didn’t bother to greet her. “Thank God, when are you coming?”

  “Uh. Ally…”

  My stomach clenched. I cupped my hand around the phone so I wouldn’t have to shout to be heard over the noise. “No. Don’t say you aren’t coming.”

  “I can’t. I’m at a movie with my sister. Sorry.”

  “MC. You have to come.”

  “Sorry.”

  Before I could read her the riot act, Madison called in. “Okay,” I said. You’re off the hook. Madison’s on the line.”

  “But, Ally—.”

  “Bye.” I clicked over. “Hi, Madison.”

  “Hi, Ally. I just got your message. I’m so glad you got to go!”

  “Yeah. Whatever. When are you coming?”

  “I can’t, Ally. I promised my mother I’d help her plan this bridal shower for my aunt.”

  “Bridal shower? You don’t even know how to plan a wedding shower.”

  “Of course I don’t. But Mom’s freaking out about it. She’s supposed to meet with her mother-in-law tomorrow. And she’s terrified. We’re searching the Internet for ideas.”

  “She’s a grown up,” I snapped. “She can handle it.”

  “Oh come on, Ally. You don’t need me there. Aren’t you hanging with Jonathan?”

  “No,” I hissed into the phone with a quick look to make sure people weren’t listening in. “He’s playing basketball. He hasn’t seen me yet.”

  “Well, get his attention.”

  In this madhouse? “I can’t.”

  “Don’t you know anybody?”

  “Just Haley, and I’m not hanging out with her. I’d rather go home.”

  “For heaven’s sake.”

  “If you don’t get here in the next half hour, our friendship is over.” I used my most firm tone.

  She laughed. “Yeah, right. And when Jonathan does see you, I’ll be ignored the rest of the night. No. Thank you.”

  “Thirty minutes,” I said and disconnected. I didn’t believe for a moment that she’d show up.

  In the next ten minutes, some more people came in and sat on the bleachers. I wasn’t so obviously alone anymore. Unfortunately, sitting only inches from a group of people at ease with each other only stressed me more.

  I decided to take another bathroom break. Unnecessary, but who would know? I climbed down from the bleachers and started for the door, only to hear my name.

  I turned to see who knew me. Haley of course.

  “Uh, hi,” I said. “What’s up?”

  Haley rolled her eyes. “Caroline called and said for you to come sit with us until Jonathan finishes playing. So what gives? Does he know you’re here?”

  I blushed. The last person I wanted to look pathetic in front of was Haley. “Uh. No. I was just about to yell to him.” MC must have called Caro and begged her to help. How pathetic.

  “Really,” Haley said, raising an overplucked eyebrow. “Because I can get him for you.”

  “No thanks. It’s good to see you, though. Maybe I’ll see you later.”

  She stuck two fingers in her mouth like she was going to do one of those loud whistle things.

  “No!”

  She crossed her arms over her chest.

  “Fine.” I glanced nervously at the court. They were headed back to this end. I had noticed that the guys all looked over at the bench on the other side every now and then. The guys were subbing in and out pretty regularly.

  “I’m going to go over there where those guys are and have them pull him out on the next sub.” I eyed her. “Is that to your satisfaction?”

  She wrinkled her nose. “Lacks drama, but it will do.”

  I skirted the court to reach the other side and approached the four guys sitting on the bench.

  The guy on the end closest to me smiled. “Hey, Ally.”

  He looked kind of familiar. Oh, Dave. His hair was so wet with sweat that it looked brown instead of blonde.

  “Hey, Dave,” I said. I sat next to him on the bench.

  “Jon said you weren’t coming.”

  “I didn’t think I was,” I said.

  “Has he seen you yet?”

  I shook my head. “I thought he’d look over here eventually.”

  Dave grinned. “Yeah.” Then he stood and yelled, “Jonathan,” as the guys ran past.

  Jonathan tried to glare at Dave and almost tripped. Then, he saw me and grinned.

  Jonathan ran over to the bench and another guy rushed into the game.

  “Hi,” he said. “You came!”

  “Yeah, Caroline told my mom and she didn’t want me to miss out.”

  He glanced at Dave and said, “Let’s walk a little.” I guess he didn’t want Dave listening. We walked to the gym door where the hall was surprisingly quiet.

  “I’m glad you’re here,” he said, swiping at his brow with his t-shirt. “I’ve been playing for like two hours.”

  “You looked great out there,” I said. Then I blushed again.

  He grinned. “I’ve got a change of clothes in my locker. I’m going to head to the shower. If no one’s in there making out.”

  “Okay. I’ll be on the bleachers.”

  “Great,” he said, and he jogged off to the boy’s room.

  Now I was grinning like a fool. I went into the restroom to check my hair. Actually got some lip-gloss out of my backpack. I’d never done that before. I’d also packed a toothbrush and toothpaste because I figured by morning, I’d be really desperate for them.

  I only had a few moments with the mirror before a group of four girls invaded. They’d come in to badmouth some other girl.

  One of them was all whiny. “Who does she think she is, anyway?”

  The others assured her that they didn’t know.

  “Are you almost done?” One of them asked me. “I’m burning up in there. I need to blot.”

  I refrained from commenting on her shiny forehead. “Sure.” I slipped out the door.

  Since I didn’t know how long boys took in the shower, I decided to check out the other rooms. The game room was loaded with pinball, foosball, air hockey, and a bunch of guys. The crowd around the pizza had cleared, and only a few kids were in the kitchen grabbing refills on pink lemonade.

  I had just finished texting Caroline, MC, and Madison that all was well when Jonathan came up behind me. He smelled like soap and shampoo. “Oh, man. I forgot about the pizza. Is there any left? I’m starved.”

  “Yeah,” I gestured to the counter. “Better hurry though.”

  He swiped at his damp hair, which had me thinking not so innocent thoughts. It suddenly hit me that he’d really just been in the shower naked. I must be some kind of pervert because that thought sent my pulse racing.

  Oblivious to my train of thought, he heaped three pieces on a plate and gave the pink lemonade an uncertain look.

  “I’ve got quarters,” I said motioning to the machine in the hall. “Want a coke?”

  He set down his plate of pizza and pulled out his wallet. “I’ve got it. Coke sounds good. Do you want one?”

  Before I could even answer, he’d inserted a dollar in the machine and handed me an ice cold Coke. “Yes,” I said and waited for him to get another for himself.

  He popped his can open, took a long drag, and went back to the kitchen to grab his pizza. “Let’s sit out here,” he said, leading the way.

  I opened my Coke and followed.

  He’d found a spot right where the wall curved in that was quiet a
nd almost private. He slid down the wall and sat, already taking a bite of his pizza. “Sorry,” he said. “I’ve been playing for like—”

  “Two hours,” I finished.

  He smiled, fortunately not sharing a full view of the food in his mouth. “So what’s up with your mother?”

  I told him about the boxers, the comic books, and the jewelry. By the time I finished, he’d inhaled all of his pizza and washed it down with his Coke. He jumped up. “Wait here.” Then he rejoined me without the plate and empty can. “Your mother promises never to leave town again?”

  “Yes. At least until I’m eighteen. Although she did say that she had a free pass if Mel Gibson called her up.” I smirked. “I thought the odds were pretty much in my favor, so I said okay.”

  Jonathan laughed and took my hand in his. “With your luck, he’ll call her.”

  “Are you saying I have bad luck?”

  “Well, you did step in dog doo just the other day. Your dad busted you. And he walked out when I was making fun of our friends, and totally busted us again.”

  “You made your point. Anyway, I’m thinking of disabling her Internet connection just in case.”

  Jonathan thought for a minute. “You could report her credit card stolen.”

  “Or we could hack her profile on the single’s sites to make her sound horrid.”

  “I vote for all three,” he said.

  “We’ll do whatever is necessary,” I agreed.

  The clipboard guy appeared in the hall and looked around. “Have you seen Kristi?” he asked us. “Short? Blonde?”

  We shook our heads.

  Another guy came out in green t-shirt that said chaperone. “Find her?”

  “No.” He tapped the pen against the clipboard.

  “I bet she’s on the stage again making out with her boyfriend.”

  The clipboard guy stopped tapping. “She’d better not be,” he said. “And next time find a more discreet way to tell me.” He angled his head at us.

  “Sorry,” chaperone guy said and followed him down the hall and through a door.

  “Phil’s the youth minister,” Jonathan said. “He’s an okay guy, but these lock-ins always make him uptight.”

  “Why does he do it, then?”

  “To give teens a safe place they can go to stay out of trouble. Didn’t you read the brochure?” His brown eyes lit with his smile.

  “Must have missed it,” I said.

  The short, blonde appeared suddenly from the door the others had entered. She stomped down to the middle of the hall and took up her post. Then she scowled at us. “Don’t you two have somewhere to be?”

  Yikes.

  “Let’s see if they’ve started the movies yet,” Jonathan suggested.

  We went into the third room on the left, which happened to be a nursery with a pretty nice TV. Another green-shirted chaperone was getting the DVD player set up. A few teens had trickled in.

  “Let’s grab a good spot,” Jonathan said. “Did you bring a sleeping bag?”

  “It’s in the hall.”

  “Good let’s grab those and take a spot against the wall.”

  I located my bag and turned to find him holding a Bob the Builder sleeping bag. I couldn’t help it. I laughed.

  He just gave me that crooked smile and raised a brow. “Are you finished yet?”

  “No,” I said, sucking in some air. The sight of this rugged, athletic guy standing there holding a preschooler’s sleeping bag…

  “I borrowed Ben’s.”

  “I see that.” I finally calmed down enough to follow him back to the room. I could never pull off a sleeping bag like that. I’d have been humiliated. Jonathan had way more self-confidence than I did.

  He got a couple of laughs and remarks as we went to the back wall of the nursery next to two cribs. Jonathan just smiled and said, “You can borrow it next time if you want.”

  I realized Caroline could have done the same thing. She could bring any embarrassing sleeping bag and pull it off. You just had to have the guts. If only they sold them at the mall. Guts, of course. Not sleeping bags.

  “I’m going to buy you a Hannah Montana bag for next time. We’ll see how far you’re willing to go.”

  “Bring it on,” he said, cracking his knuckles.

  “All right guys,” chaperone guy said. “Which do want? X-men or We Are Marshall.”

  After a chorus of disagreement, he said, “We Are Marshall it is.”

  There were a few grumbles, but he put in the DVD and dimmed the lights.

  Jonathan leaned back against the sleeping bags and motioned for me to join him. He took my hand in his. I’d never realized a church nursery could be so romantic.

  “And no making out,” chaperone guy said with a look in our direction.

  Giggles followed, and the guy sat down to watch the movie.

  Okay, maybe not.

  Jonathan put his arm around me, and I scooted a little bit closer. Not making out, but still heaven.

  I was so glad my mother didn’t let me miss this. And Caroline. I’d have to really thank her too.

  Jonathan leaned close to my ear, and I could feel his warm breath as he whispered, “Did I mention that I’m glad you got to come?”

  “Yes,” I whispered. “Me too.”

  Then, he gave me quick little kiss next to my ear and turned back to the movie.

  By the time the movie ended, my butt was asleep. I didn’t care. It was totally worth it. Not the movie, but cuddling with Jonathan.

  The lights came on and we all blinked.

  “What next?” Jonathan asked.

  “You can go back and play b-ball with your friends if you want,” I said, just to be nice.

  He shook his head. “Thanks, but no. They’ve probably all collapsed from dehydration by now.”

  The chaperone guy went over to the television. “Our second half of the double feature will be X-men.”

  “I can’t feel my legs,” I admitted to Jonathan.

  He grinned and stood. Then he pulled me to my feet. “Is that better?”

  “Not yet.”

  He stood patiently waiting for blood to find its way back into my feet.

  “Okay,” I said finally. “I’m good.”

  We went out into the hall. Most of the movie watchers had tired of the nursery, but new people were coming in as they heard X-men was about to start.

  “Where are we going?”

  “I’m not sure,” Jonathan admitted. “Apparently the stage is off limits.”

  “And under patrol.”

  We peeked in the gym. The guys had stopped playing basketball. A group of girls was dancing in one corner. They weren’t very good at it. One of them, a chubby blonde, appeared to be teaching the others some moves. I cringed in sympathy.

  The smell of old socks hung in the air, and I was glad Jonathan had taken a shower. Oh no. There were those impure thoughts again. Luckily we had enough outside influences to tone down the Catholic guilt about having normal teenage feelings.

  “I’ve got an idea.” He headed to the bottled water machine. “This is Phil’s office.” Just past the office, on the other side of the machine, were two empty chairs. My backside much appreciated the idea of a real chair. “I was hoping nobody would be over here. It’s too close to the office.”

  He turned the chairs so that they faced each other and we’d be pretty well hidden by the machine. We sat and he lifted my hand and kissed it. I could have melted right there.

  The sound of hushed voices and rapid footsteps approached.

  Then Clipboard Guy’s voice was saying, “We’ve got all the parents coming except for Haley’s. We need to try her house again.”

  One of his minions said, “What were they thinking playing strip poker at a church?”

  Clipboard Guy said, “Some teenagers just don’t think. They don’t learn to think until they’re twenty.”

  “Hey,” the other guy replied. He apparently wasn’t twenty yet.

&nb
sp; “I said some,” Clipboard Guy grumbled as they went to his office.

  When they were clear of us, I gave Jonathan a wide-eyed look. “Haley was busted for strip poker!” I whispered excitedly.

  Jonathan’s mouth quirked into a grin, and we both covered our mouths, quaking with laughter.

  Haley completely deserved it.

  The voices from the office reached us again. “Go check in with Tina. And try to find those two couples from the movie room who were so cuddly. I don’t want them slipping away without our noticing.”

  I stopped laughing.

  Jonathan’s eyes lit with mischief. He pointed to himself and then to me.

  Not only was I part of a couple, but I was on the radar screen for demonstrating affection. My life had changed a lot in the last two weeks.

  The footsteps moved farther down the hall.

  I gave Jonathan what felt like a saucy grin even though I didn’t know I had that in me.

  He put his arms on my shoulder, gently pulled me close, and touched his lips to mine.

  Oh. My. God. A strange hunger swept through me as he deepened the kiss. Tenderness gave way to desperate ferocity, and his hands came around my back to pull me to him. I went willingly, sliding forward and threading my hands through his damp hair. I forgot about the water machine and the chaperones and the gym full of people. It was just me and Jonathan and his powerful kiss.

  A frustrated, “Oh for crying out loud,” brought me back to reality.

  A chaperone stood glaring at us with arms crossed. “Cut it out. We’ve got enough crap to deal with tonight.”

  “Sorry,” I whispered trying to clear my head by blinking a few times.

  “Look,” the guy said. “Get to the gym and I won’t say anything to Phil. He’s already up to his armpits in trouble.”

  Jonathan had the presence of mind to mumble a thank you.

  The guy gave us one last look before going into the office.

  Jonathan took my hand and we ran down the hall to the gym, giggling. Well, I giggled. He just trembled with laughter.

  “At least they didn’t kick us out,” I said.